Baywatch to burned rubber: Pamela Anderson's racing ambition

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Photos:Pamela Anderson's motor racing venture

Baywatch to burned rubber – Pamela Anderson has become joint owner of GT Series team Race Alliance.

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Photos:Pamela Anderson's motor racing venture

Pam Power – Anderson fronted the Downforce1 racing team in March 2012, which planned to compete in the 2012 European Le Mans and International GT Open series. The plan, however, failed to materialize.

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Photos:Pamela Anderson's motor racing venture

Driving force – The Canadian star is pictured here with Markus Fux at the Downforce1 launch. Occasional racing driver Fux is also involved in the Race Alliance team.

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Photos:Pamela Anderson's motor racing venture

Up close and personal – The former Playboy model pictured alongside German socialite Marcus Prinz von Anhalt at the Downforce1 launch last year.

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Photos:Pamela Anderson's motor racing venture

Baywatch beginnings – Anderson shot to fame in the hit U.S. TV show Baywatch, in which she played lifeguard C.J. Parker between 1992 and 1998.

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Photos:Pamela Anderson's motor racing venture

Paris in the pits – Anderson is not the first female celebrity to enter motorsport. Socialite Paris Hilton co-founded the SuperMartxe VIP MotoGP team in December 2010.

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Story highlights

Actress and model Pamela Anderson is fronting the Downforce1 racing team

The team will compete in the European Le Mans and International GT Open series

The former Baywatch star says she is a fan of all forms of motorsport

Socialite Paris Hilton co-founded her own MotoGP motorbike racing team in 2010

Pamela Anderson's career to date may have been more Playboy than pit lane, but the former Baywatch star has decided to dip her feet into motorsport by launching her own racing team.

The 44-year-old actress and ex-cover girl is fronting the Downforce1 team, which will compete in the 2012 European Le Mans and International GT Open series.

Anderson, more famous for sporting a red bathing suit as C.J. Parker in the hit '90s TV show than racing overalls, launched the venture earlier this month with the aim of competing in the 2013 open-wheel NASCAR series in the U.S.

"Fast cars and fast women go together," the former Playmate of the Month said on the team's website. "Here we are surrounded by men, I love it."

The Canadian is described as a fan of motorsport divisions "from NASCAR to Formula One" and hailed the venture as "a dream come true."

"I'm so proud of the Downforce 1 team," she said. "These gentleman have achieved the impossible and built up a team in just four months.

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"I cannot wait to see my cars on the race track, it's hard to believe until I see it."

But Anderson's dream has been temporarily derailed. The team's sole driver Markus Fux, who also doubles up as Downforce1's marketing coordinator, announced they will miss this weekend's International GT race in France.

"Due to technical issues and circumstances beyond the control of the team, the management of Downforce1 have reluctantly decided, in the interest of the team and its sponsors, not to attend the first race at Paul Ricard," read the statement.

"The team now intends to begin its 2012 race program at the GT Open Series round at Portimao on the 28th April. The team apologizes to its many fans and supporters."